In offshore deep-water well drilling, a surface layer conductor is the first-layer conductor installed in the construction process of the entire deep-water oil well, and provides structural support for all follow-up conductors and wellhead equipment. Deploying a surface layer conductor by conductor jetting has advantages, for example, the drilling time can be saved, and well cementation or formation protection is not required. However, the conductor running work has to be carried out with the aid of an efficient and reliable running tool.
At present, the research on surface layer conductor running tools for deep-water well drilling is only in a starting stage in China. Most technical operators that employ the conductor jetting technology in deep-water well drilling in the South China Sea region are foreign oil companies, who only provide a field service but do not disclose the technology or sell products or tools, and keep secrete the key part and core data; in addition, their service charges are very high. Consequently, there are many difficulties in our deep-water well drilling operations.